[dropcap style=”letter” size=”52″ bg_color=”#ffffff” txt_color=”#000000″]F[/dropcap]irst of all, I’d like to thank everyone who took the time to nominate the manufacturer, retailer, and sales representative they admire for our annual Legends, Leaders & Luminaries awards. There were many deserving people suggested for each category, and I know there are many more out there in our industry who are exceptional in what they do even though their names might not have been submitted.
In many of the submissions, the words “honest,” “caring,” “enthusiastic,” and “helpful” were used to describe the nominees. While these attributes aren’t ones you typically read in Forbes or Money magazines’ personality profiles, they perfectly sum up what makes our industry so unique.
The late entrepreneur and innovator Steve Jobs said, “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it.”
I think it’s no coincidence that the people who make up this year’s Legends, Leaders & Luminaries all speak of having a passion for what they do as well as for the industry itself. I understand completely where they are coming from. I am one of the lucky people who love what I do – writing and reporting – but until I started covering the lighting industry, the topics I covered were more or less separate from my identity as a journalist. As the winners of our awards recount, the lighting industry is unlike any other; it draws you in and you become immersed in it heart and soul. It’s now my 21st year reporting on lighting, and I consider myself as much a part of the lighting world as I do a member of the media.
This year’s Legends, Leaders & Luminaries all credit their passion for the industry – as well as the people who are their peers within it – as the reason they are successful and so fulfilled in doing what they do for a living. This month, let’s all give thanks to each other for the way our industry treats and supports one another. We are all part of this wonderful (and sometimes wacky) lighting family. I hope you will enjoy reading more about our fellow Legends, Leaders & Luminaries in this issue…maybe next year, YOU will be featured in this special section.
